CFA Students

BU School of Theatre Students Participate in 2023 Prague Quadrennial

A group of design, management, and production students from BU School of Theatre are headed to the Czech Republic from June 8-18, 2023, for the 15^th edition of the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space.

Since 1967, the Prague Quadrennial (PQ) presents the best works in scenography, introducing artworks from dozens of countries from hundreds of artists. PQ 2023 will be at the Holešovice Market, and numerous parts will also be hosted in the National Gallery and The Academy of Performing Arts. The theme of the 15th edition is RARE, representing the uniqueness and raw realities that artists create to help envision what society and theatre look like in a post-pandemic world.

RARE design submissions that support the inclusion of underrepresented communities, acknowledge stories born from systemic power structures and historical events, and document the recent COVID-19 pandemic are being celebrated at PQ.

One of the recognized works is by BU scene design alum Ami Okazaki (CFA’23), whose scenic design for SOT’s 2021 production of Machinal was selected by the United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) PQ 23 jury and curators to be featured in the USITT PQ 2023 Emerging Exhibit.

Machinal, written by Sophie Treadwell and directed by Shamus McCarty (CFA’23), is a powerful expressionist drama from the 1920s about the dependent status of women in an increasingly mechanized society, based on the true story of American murderess Ruth Snyder. Treadwell was a campaigning journalist in America and among her assignments was the sensational murder involving Snyder who, with her lover Judd Gray, had murdered her husband and gone to the electric chair.

For Ami, scene design can help create RARE emotions and memories in people’s lives, which is a powerful tool for social change. “The last two years in the pandemic made me realize that one of the most significant differences between the live experience and online experience is the presence of another human being in space. The perception of human presence influences the emotional relationship between you and the environment surrounding you, and it certainly affects how people experience stories,” says Ami, whose designs will be exhibited at PQ in both digital and physical formats.

Another four SOT students received research and travel grants from BU’s Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program and BU School of Theatre to conduct research with Assistant Professor of Scene Design Jon Savage for the Contemporary World Theatre course he teaches. Together, the students will be collecting data on theatre produced during the Soviet Occupation to be compared to present-day theatre in the United States. The undergraduate students joining Savage are Rowen Bailey (CFA’25) BFA Theatre Arts Design & Production; Emily Cady (CFA’25) BFA Stage Management; Rebecca Kleeman (CFA’25) BFA Stage Management; and Grant Powicki (CFA’25) BFA Lighting Design.

“We are also going to be collecting data, images, and contacts on theatre throughout the world that is being produced. We’ll be looking at the content, context, and producing models and outcomes from different cultures with an eye on diversity, equity, and inclusion and other social justice topics,” says Savage, who recalls working on the PQ as a graduate student at North Carolina School of the Arts. “I was fortunate to work on the PQ as a grad student and it is life-changing. This is the first step in creating robust international experiences in which students can design, produce, manage, act, and direct at an international event. It is our hope that we can establish our presence at this and other global theatre festivals so that our students may be able to participate in an even more robust way.”

The group of students will have a busy couple of days. In addition to immersing in PQ, the group is participating in a LiDAR (light detecting and ranging) scanning project in collaboration with Cal State Fullerton; meeting members of the International Organization of Scenographers and Theatre Technicians (OISTAT) to discuss what it’s like to work internationally; touring theatres; exploring sites and shows; and attending theatre workshops and seminars.

BU School of Theatre is also proud to grant awards to the following students to attend the Prague 2023 summer trip: Gage Baker (CFA’24) MFA Sound Design; Sam Bliss (CFA’23) BFA Sound Design; Gabrielle Caden-James (CFA’25) BFA Stage Management; Zachary Connell (CFA’25) BFA Lighting Design; Celeste Delgadillo (CFA’25) BFA Lighting Design; and Peyton Tavares (CFA’24) MFA Scene Design. Assistant Professor and Program Head of Sound Design, David Remedios, is also attending the Prague Quadrennial.

more info on pq 2023